DNA testing shows that John Brantley of
Nash County, is not a descendant of Edward Brantley of 1638 through
a consistent male line. That is, he does not descend from
him from father to son, to son, etc as we would expect. Often
grandfathers will adopt the children of a deceased daughter and rear
them with their own name. Since the Y-chromosome is handed down from
father to son ONLY, it would not follow through the daughter. It is
likely that John is a descendant of Edward, but DNA testing seemingly
assures us that he did not descend through the generations from father
to son. Since he was no doubt tied either by adoption, if not by blood,
to the Brantley family, his descendants are considered of the lineage of
Edward. The best news of this discovery, is that now we can identify
his descendants by the distinct DNA profile as shown in others of his
known descendants. It has already shown that some proposed as his
descendants were, in fact not, and others previously unknown in his
lineage have now been identified as his descendants. There are many
more discoveries that will be made in the coming years as we find others
among his many descendants throughout America through DNA testing.
(Brantley
Association: John Brantley of Nash County)